Let Sleeping Gajeel's Lie
by okmeamithinknow
Summary: All Gajeel wanted was a nap. But no, a certain someone just had to bother him enough that confessions get made. Just maybe not the confessions that you think they will be. (Gajevy centric with snippets of NaLu)
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!

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Hours ago the town had been overrun by the screaming of riotous hoodlums, waging war with snowballed ammunitions, reveling in the first snow of the year. Now, long past dark or a time when any sane person should be about, a fresh layer of crystallized snow pillowed the landscape. No one dared be out this late as the bitter wind, which had been nothing more than a kiss on the skin earlier in the day, tore through the city, and only the bravest ventured further than his or her front steps.

Except for the soft snore from the man sprawled out on the couch and the periodic rustle of pages being turned, no sound disturbed the tranquil evening in the cozy home. A flannel blanket, thrown haphazardly across the iron dragonslayer's bare chest, had long since chased away the day's chill and slowly slipped down, a waterfall of blue flannel pooling on the floor. One long sweatpants-enclosed leg rested over the back of the couch while its mate stretched over the side of the armrest, both too long to comfortably rest on the furniture.

Manicured nails trailed through his hair, having coaxed him into his slumber with a well-practiced ease. The other hand supported a weathered novel that had seen better days. The dog-eared paperback was slowly coming loose from it's binding and the pages were warped from when someone spilled their beer on it. The novel had survived several moves, multiple missions, and time spent around her rowdy guildmates. He had offered to buy her a new one ages ago, but this copy had been with her through some of the toughest parts of her life and Levy insisted it be treated with the dignity and honor of an old friend. Feeling nostalgic after the long cold day spent frolicking with their friends, she had picked up the book again this evening.

It's a treaty the two have long since worked out. She's free to read, undistracted, so long as she's near him, his head cradled in her lap as it was now, caressing his hair, or snuggled at his side; somehow always touching him. His unspoken ultimatum, _"Enjoy your little stories, Shrimp. Just remember you still come home to me."_ Her reply a cheeky roll of her eyes and a tacit, _"No duh."_

She absentmindedly stroked the man's hair, twisting her fingers gently through the thick black tangles. The motion would be sure to leave knots in the long mane and cause him to grumble later about the bookworm and her propensity to create nests. Of course that would lead to her poking fun at his pot calling her kettle black, if the hoard of scrap metal that filled their second bedroom or the Mount Hakobe-sized mass of pillows and blankets that made up their bed were evidence enough.

As the tension in the book built Levy's hand stilled, coming to rest tangled in the dragonslayer's now thoroughly ratted locks. Clutching the book to her chest, she sighed; a soft sound as she was still mindful of the snoozing man whose head was cushioned in her lap. The climax never ceased to bring her to tears, and this time was no different. As she closed her eyes, ruminating over the hero's plight, tears pooled in her eyes and trickled down her cheeks.

Levy sniffed and swiped at her eyes, but not before a single drop tumbled from her chin and onto the tip of Gajeel's nose. The drop slid sideways, gliding down the side of his nostril. Somewhere in the deepest recesses of the dragon's mind, he registered the small woman's distress and the waking world invaded his dreamscape, the idyllic scene morphing into a much more gloomy surrounding. In the thin periphery haze that accompanied his slumber, the intrusion penetrated his subconscious, but stubbornly the man refused to emerge from the cobwebs of sleep.

Trying to cling to the illusion of sleep, he shifted, nestling further into her lap. But when a second tear joined the first in it's trek across his face, he was forced to come to grips with the fact that his nap had met its unfortunate end. The girl took a shuddered breath, unintentionally shaking his head and jostling the last foggy remnants of sleep from his consciousness. A faint growl grew in the back of his throat at being awakened so early. Finally giving up, one eye flickered open and he squinted up at the blue-haired mage above him.

"Oi!" His voice was thick with sleep, but his indignation was clear as another salty droplet fell onto one of the piercings that made up his left eyebrow. "Shrimp! Why the hell are you crying?"

Startled out of her trance, Levy gazed down at the man with waterlogged eyes. "What?"

"I said," Gajeel repeated, his voice a low rumble. "Why, _the hell_ , are you crying?"

"Oh," Levy mumbled as though it was an adequate response.

She flipped the book down, temporarily blocking his face, and scanned the pages once more. Her mind was still caught up in the story in the worn pages as she reread the chapter, and she missed his scowl. He waited; convinced she was just gathering her thoughts, but when she remained silent for too long he realized she'd forgotten about him. It wasn't until he reached up and rapped a knuckle across her forehead lightly that she registered she hadn't actually answered his question.

"S-Sorry. I just- I… It's- It's just so heart breaking, you know?!"

He let out a deep breath through his nose, a somnolent sigh with a whisper of displeasure at being roused from a rather enjoyable dream, and brought a hand up to rub the sleep from his eyes.

"No," he stated flatly. This wasn't the first time she had startled him out a good nap because of an emotional reaction to a particularly good piece of literature, and he knew it wouldn't be the last. "I don't know. Care to tell me?"

"It's so tragic. He-his-…" her voice cracked. "He just worked up the courage to tell her."

She paused again, stifling a sob. Levy placed the book on the armrest and scrubbed her face with the back of her hands. _What was wrong with her?!_ In the struggle to reign in her tears, she knocked her headband askew. The gray fabric had been one of Gajeel's favorites once but small script mage commandeered it ages ago, and now it slipped off as she scraped her hands though her hair. He grabbed her hands to halt her frantic motions, and pressed both of her palms between his own.

"Tell her what?" he coaxed, not wholly invested in the story, but more concerned about letting her work out her feelings, knowing that if he didn't nip it in the bud, his mate's morose mood could last into the wee hours of the morning costing both of them hours of precious sleep. Sleep that he could be getting right now if she wasn't currently crying again. Sure he could think of more _inventive_ ways that the two of them could lose sleep, but knowing the woman as well as he did, he was certain that any of those ideas were most likely the furthest things from her mind at the present moment.

"That he loves her! The protagonist, he just realized that he's been enamored with the girl he's been betrothed to all along and was ready to declare his ardent love for her, and then she-she dies! The antagonist ruthlessly mows her down and neither of them know how they really feel about one another and-now-they'll-never-know!" she wailed. The words poured from her mouth with an urgency he didn't understand.

Biting back the urge to make a snarky comment, one that might very well send the over-emotional woman into a tailspin- and banish him to an uncomfortable night on the too small couch- if he didn't watch what he said, he studied her face for a minute before asking, "K?"

It was then that she realized he hadn't made the mental leap with her, and she knew it wasn't that he lacked the empathy to follow the rabbit trail of her lachrymose whiplash, but that she would have to spell it out more concisely. There was a long pause as Levy filtered the thoughts and emotions that were currently making a mad desperate dash through her mind in an attempt to come up with a cohesive statement that would make him understand and she realized with a start that she'd barely made the leap herself. She wasn't completely sure of why the tale had brought about such a strong visceral reaction this time around. Yes, the climax of the story made her tear up each time she read it, but this was the first she hadn't been able to console herself afterwards. Though there were many possible reasons she sifted through, her mind kept circling back to the same horrid thought.

Gajeel scrutinized the girl as her face contorted into a familiar of expression. It was the one she used while deciphering particularly difficult ruins and if she hadn't been so upset, if he hadn't been so focused an alleviating the cause of her distress, he might have considered the way her face scrunched up, nose wrinkling and brows furrowed in concentration, cute. He might have even teased her about being able to hear the gears whir in her head as she organized her thoughts, but not tonight. No, he would save that for tomorrow, when the feelings weren't so fresh and she'd had a little more time to process.

He knew the instant the realization dawned on her when she tensed, the muscles in her stomach contracting next to his ear as she took yet another trembling gasp. Then, in a small voice, so faint that if the man hadn't been so wholly focused on the girl before him that he would have missed her question, she asked, "What if it were us?"

"The hell d'you mean, if it were us?"

"Just that!" she exclaimed.

Levy threw up her hands, knocking the book from where she had placed it on the armrest. It landed on the floor with a thwack. The few loosened pages finally broke free from the last of the bindings that held it together and skidded under the coffee table.

"What if it were us? What if we never told each other how we felt? What if I died before... What if you…"

The words tumbled off the tip of her tongue with a gasp and if she could have stopped them she would have, but all her thoughts came rolling out of her mouth. He could feel the panic boiling up in her as her muscles tensed further.

 _This was what she was worried about? This is what had woken him from his nap?_ He felt a great rumbling chuckle building in his chest, waiting to burst forth. He knew, however, that laughing at the distraught woman's plight would end up in a fight. So stifling back his laughter, Gajeel reached up to press a hand to her cheek and wiped away the trail left by her latest tears with the pad of his thumb.

"That ain't us though, Shorty. I know how ya feel about me, and you certainly know how I feel," he gave her a wry smile.

"But what if we hadn't?" She looked down at him with frenzied eyes.

"But we do." Gajeel nudged her stomach with his cheek.

"But…"

"No buts."

He buried his nose into her stomach in a blatant attempt to distract her, pushing her already bunched up shirt further up her torso. She flinched as the cold metal of the piercings on his nose brushed against her exposed abdomen and then sighed.

He was right, of course; it was silly to imagine what their lives might have looked like if the two of them had made different choices. If he'd never come to Fairy Tail. If he'd never tried to make amends. If she hadn't forgiven him. If neither of them admitted how they felt about one another. If one of them had died on any number of the dangerous jobs the two of them took. She took another deep breath and felt her shoulders relax. They weren't characters in one of her stories and there was no impending doom looming over the two of them, preventing them from being together as they were now.

"No butts but yours," he growled softly in Draconic, face still pressed against the soft contour of her skin. He hadn't meant for her to hear the comment, but when Levy giggled and Gajeel felt the last of the tension drain out of her body, he figured it was worth it. He turned to look at her face just in time to catch her rolling her eyes at him. Gajeel quirked an eyebrow at the girl, but she just shook her head.

"'Sides you can't compare _us_ to one of your books," he muttered.

"Because everything about our courtship screamed torrid love affair," she murmured. She gave him a sardonic smile and brushed his hair back from his forehead. "If anything it was more like a horror novel."

He snorted. "Yeah right. Our story's straight out of one of your goddamn fairy tales. One with dragons and fairies and all that shit." He puffed up his chest, proud of his analogy.

"Sure _,_ " she agreed, mimicking his snarky tone. "Quite the fairy tale. Remind me again. How did the prince sweep the princess off her feet? What were the magic words that broke the lonesome curse upon her?"

Her tone screamed trouble, but he chose to ignore it, reveling in the fact that he had been able to snap her out of her melancholy spirits. "Dunno. What did he say?"

Levy chuckled darkly and pure mischief radiated from her face for a brief second. She scowled then, but couldn't keep the mirth from shining in her eyes as she grunted in what he realized was a crude caricature of his voice, "Me dragon man. You tiny woman. We make sexy times."

He snorted and choked on his laugh. Whatever he had been expecting, that was not it. Thoroughly pleased with herself, and his reaction to the comment, the room rang with her unrestrained laughter, admittedly one of his favorite sounds, and he found he couldn't even fake outrage at the blatant slight. The couch shook with the combined force of their laughter.

However, he couldn't just let the jab slide, so he gathered himself, and retorted, "What'dja expect me to say? 'Oh Shorty, I cannot bear to spend another day without you by my side, my perspicacious flower!'?"

"Perspicacious?" she snorted, cocking an eyebrow at him. "Have you been reading my thesaurus again?"

"You know you fucking love it when I use big words," he replied, their conversation now circling back to a familiar exchange. He poked her in the side, earning himself a lopsided grin.

"About as much as you fucking love it when I swear," she leaned down and pressed an impish kiss to his lips.

"I'm so glad we're over that 'will they/won't they?' shit."

She giggled again, and based on the timbre alone, a deeper, more wicked tone, Gajeel knew that there was some private joke he wasn't yet privy to, and the fact that the two had agreed early on that there would be no secrets between them, that giggle irked him.

"What?" he demanded, brows pulled together

"Lu and I planned all of it you know?"

"What do you mean?" The scowl grew deeper.

"Well I had already made up my mind about you and I had a pretty good idea how you felt about me."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"And risk looking like Juvia if I was wrong and you didn't return my sentiments?"

He didn't have an answer for that; just arched a brow in her direction, indicating that she should continue her story.

"Anyway, after drinking one night Lu and I tried to persuade Natsu into goading you into at least acknowledging your feelings for me. I think the two of us were pretty drunk at the time and frankly I was exasperated and tired of sidestepping the issue. I figured if he made you mad enough, you would drop that ludicrous guard of yours."

Levy poked him on his bare chest for emphasis and he snatched her hand up. He caught her by surprise in what she assumed was an uncharacteristic display of affection when he brought the offending appendage to his lips. Until he nibbled gently on her finger. Pulling her hand free, she swatted at him, and then settled the hand on his chest.

"Hopefully you would admit to more than you'd want. He refused of course. 'Challenging you to a fight was one thing,' he said, 'but deliberately picking a fight with you, over something as complicated at mates or relationships or _feelings_ …'" she giggled. "Well, he was convinced that you would give him a sound thrashing."

"Damn right I did."

She patted his cheek and flashed him patronizing smirk that screamed, _"Of course you did,"_ and then waited for him to catch up to the rest of her story.

"If he said no, then how didja get him to do it?"

"Lucy told him it wasn't very fair if he was the only dragonslayer in the guild getting some action, and if you weren't getting any, he wouldn't be getting any either."

"She didn't."

"She did, and he still refused," she snickered at his unmasked incredulity.

"And they…" he left the sentence hanging in the air, unfinished.

"Nope."

"How long did he last?"

She snorted, and the sound was so decidedly _Gajeel_ that he wondered if she knew that she had picked it up from him. "Two. Days."

"Damn," he whistled. "Who knew Bunny Girl had such a mean streak. Remind me to thank her the next time we're down at the guild."

He snorted again and shook his head, finding it ironic that he hadn't seen it sooner. Of course she planned it. The girl was a notorious schemer, having successfully pulled off multiple sneak attacks during the guild's winter games that very morning where she managed to stuff snow down the back of his jacket no less than three times. Though he was sure that the last time had been by pure accident as she'd managed slip on a particularly slick spot and landed herself hip deep in a bank of snow at the same time.

Not to mention the ambitious prank war Levy flawlessly executed underneath the Master's nose. What had started out as a barrage of magnets, the industrial strength kind that hurt like a bitch when they snapped onto the metal studs that littered his body, somehow managing to find their way into the cupboards and drawers of Gajeel's apartment quickly spread throughout the rest of the guild. Though how Levy managed to steal all the members of the Raijinshū's underwear and string them up as a banner across the front of the guildhall without getting her ass handed to her was a secret that she would take to her grave and no amount of rare and ancient texts or pansy-ass romantic crap Gajeel had tried would pry it out of her. At the center of every prank, the impetuous fairy who slyly managed to cover her tracks by filling the pages of several of her books with glitter and engineering it so that she was no where near the scene of the crimes until after each of her stunts were discovered.

It left no team unscathed in it's wake and some how culminated a disgruntled Erza storming into the guild claiming that someone, someone she highly suspected of being a certain fire-breathing dragonslayer, had shaved off one of the requip mage's eyebrows. Levy, sensing that things would not go well for Natsu, whatever Erza's plan for revenge may have been, came clean at that point, reassuring Erza that her eyebrows remained intact. The simple spell the solid script mage herself had created, and placed over the mirrors in Fairy Hills only made it seem as though her eyebrow had gone missing.

And from that point on there was a saying amongst the guild: _Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me thrice, and you're Levy_ _._

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A.N.: Originally I wanted to post this as a one shot, but I'm having a bout of writers block with the ending. The beginning has been sitting here waiting for me to publish for weeks and I'm finally giving up and posting it. Don't forget to favorite and review!

~Crys~


	2. Chapter 2

Hi all! So here's part twoooooo!

Disclaimer: Again, I own nothing.

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The two passed in silence, one bore of comfortable familiarity, both remembering the night; the night he now knew she had a hand in orchestrating.

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 _The_ _Night_

The trio, sans Happy, had arrived earlier than normal and secured a table close enough to where Gajeel usually sat so that they would be able to "accidentally overhear" any conversations between the two dragonslayers, but not so close as to draw suspicion their way. And because it would be too suspicious if Levy didn't have something to read with her, she unloaded a stack of books, whose sheer volume should have been a dead giveaway that something was up. The tower was tall enough that she had to sit up straight to see over, and maybe, just maybe- but most likely not, given the dragonslayer's heightened senses- Gajeel would forget that the girl was there if she ducked down behind it.

Natsu had downed at least three beers before Gajeel even walked in the building, working up the courage to confront the bigger man. The girls watched him bolster himself with the alcohol, waiting on baited breath to see if he would follow through with their harebrained plan, or chicken out at the thought of intentionally inflicting the iron dragonslayer's ire over such a delicate subject.

Levy herself almost gave into the fear that had been leeching its way into her heart at the thought of the scheme backfiring, until it was too late and poor Natsu's hands started to tremble, either having sensed Gajeel's approach or from the alcohol Levy hadn't been sure. Until seconds later the iron dragonslayer stormed into the guildhall, grabbed a beer, and settled down at a table a few tables over from where the trio sat.

And when Natsu's original tactic seemed to have fallen short, his timid accusation not even warranting a glance in his direction from the iron dragonslayer, the pair had mixed reactions. The glare Lucy shot Natsu told him if he didn't get his act together, no dragonslayer would be getting laid, _ever_.

Levy, on the other hand, turned to the book she had been pretending to enjoy before Gajeel had walked into the guild with a sigh, resigning herself to another night of singlehood.

It had been an act of desperation on Levy's part anyway, she figured; trying to define what they really were, because after all, words and definitions were her thing and she and him and their not-quite-a-relationship had been standing in that void of ' _unlabelled'_ for such an extensive period of time that she felt that she might as well abandon all hope of ever having a functional romantic relationship before her hair turned as silver as Metalicana's scales.

They had waltzed, foxtrotted, tangoed a sinuous dance around the subject for so long. Toed the line in the sand between friendship and something more until the scuffmarks from boots and sandals blotted out the line, and neither one of them could put an actual label as to where their relationship stood. And yes, both of them were frustrated to hell and back with the whole situation, their together-but-not-really-together-togetherness, but neither wanted to make the first move, afraid of being wrong, afraid of getting hurt, afraid of hurting the friendship that shouldn't have been possible, not after what he had done to her before joining the guild, but yet was.

No, that night would not be the night to change that, she decided.

 _Until…_

Until Gajeel made a single snide remark about Lucy.

The comment might have been something the Salamander would have said himself, but out of Gajeel's mouth, in such flippant tones, the slight to the celestial mage's character had sent the fire dragonslayer into what seemed to be a legitimate rage.

In one swift motion Natsu jumped up from his seat and onto the bench to defend the celestial mage's honor and spewed expletives so foul that Levy's face flushed to nearly the same color as Natsu's hair. The man lit a fireball in the palm of his hand, intent on launching it at the iron dragonslayer as he crossed over the table towards Gajeel.

Both girls were startled at Natsu's sudden change in demeanor and Lucy, not wanting to cause an all out riot over some paltry comment when there were bigger fish to fry, dashed to his side. She placed a hand on his arm; carefully avoiding the flames in his outstretched palm with the proficiency of someone used to the dragonslayer's outbursts, murmuring something Levy couldn't hear from her seat into his ear.

But the bigger man must have caught it, because when Natsu turned to walk back to his seat, Gajeel sneered, "Pfff. Whipped."

At this an eerie quiet descended upon the guild, and Levy swore that if Mira could have turned the stage spotlights on them, she would have. Conversations halted and all eyes narrowed in on the four, waiting to see what the already agitated fire dragonslayer would do. Yes, violent altercations were a common occurrence in the guild, especially where Natsu was concerned, but this was the first time since Natsu and Lucy had declared themselves official that someone had dared to insult the stellar mage and cross the fire dragonslayer.

And had Levy not been staring in horror at the smaller man, she would have missed the smirk that crossed Natsu's face at the comment, calculating and entirely too triumphant for Levy's taste. And if that grin hadn't been scary enough, the wink that Natsu sent her before whirling around to face Gajeel sent her stomach into a roiling mess.

 _Oh Mavis! This was it!_

"What was that?" Natsu demanded, voice low and menacing.

The look on the Salamander's face as he cracked his knuckles was far worse than one he'd ever seen, more severe than their altercation before he'd joined the guild, or any other time the hotheaded dragons layer faced down a formidable foe.

Truth be told, Gajeel'd been itching for some sort of fight. The desire, the want, the need, however you wanted to describe the unmistakable sexual tension from this thing, whatever he and a certain cerulean-haired bookworm had become, was getting to be too much. Especially since the two had found themselves spending increasing amounts of time alone with one another, and the drive to hoard her away from everyone else like the greedy dragon he was became increasingly more difficult to combat. He could only take so many long jobs away from the guild- and her- without worrying that she might move on, and barring yet another apocalyptic confrontation, he was desperate for an outlet.

He needed some sort of distraction to relieve the tension between him and Levy before he spontaneously combusted or worse yet, lost his mind completely and his willpower imploded in on itself and everything he'd been feeling -specifically the thoroughly embarrassing and horrendously sappy fact that, like Earthland and the sun, his whole existence revolved around the petite mage who was currently staring at the two men with abject terror written plainly across her face- came spilling out of his mouth.

So without an ounce of remorse, he stood and continued on. "Ya heard me, flames for brains. You. Are. Whipped."

Natsu paused then as though choosing his words carefully. "Is it that I'm willing to stand up for the people I love or that I'm willing to back down if they ask it of me that makes me whipped?" he queried.

"Both." Tilting his head to either side, Gajeel cracked his neck. He shook out his long limbs and crossed one arm in front the other, stretching out his muscles to prepare for the fight.

Natsu relit the fire in his palm. The flames danced across his fingertips in such a casual manner, their cadence belying the true destructive force behind them, the one that Natsu hoped that he wouldn't have to unleash. A ghost of a smile flickered on his face as he asked, "So if I talked shit about Juvia, you wouldn't mind?"

It was a low blow. The water mage had been Gajeel's first and only friend when they left Phantom, and for a long while it had been just the two of them trying to prove themselves within a guild whose attitudes ranged from cool indifference to outright hatred and neither of them could begrudge their less than encouraging welcome. The pain and loneliness of being the misfits in a group of already ragtag individuals created an ironclad bond between the two ex-Phantoms and her overenthusiastic pursuit of the ice mage aside, everyone knew that the fastest way to earn a broken bone was to disparage the girl within earshot of surly dragonslayer.

Gajeel growled then, a deep and predatory sound, and the two men began circling one another in the open space of the guildhall. Lucy, unsure of what to do with herself, and unsure of Natsu's plans or if once again he was running into a battle without thinking things through, retreated, returning to Levy's side and grasped her best friend's hand. The girls shared a terrified look for a brief second and then turned their attention back to the two embattled dragons.

"Or Lily? What would you do if I…"

But Gajeel wouldn't let him finish the sentence before snarling, "Oi! Leave my cat outta this!"

He shot Natsu a glare so dark and filled with rage that he seemed to suck the shadows from the deepest corners of the hall into his skin. In response Natsu's face turned serious, the joy and frivolity the Salamander was known for uncharacteristically absent from his features. Gajeel cracked his knuckles and adjusted his stance, crouching lower as they continued to prowl around each other, waiting for the right moment to pounce.

"And if I said anything about Metalicanna?"

Gajeel visibly bristled coming to a stop a few feet in front of the girls. With his back to her, Levy couldn't see his face from where she stood, but she could feel suffocating waves of furious power as they rolled off the man. If insulting Juvia was low, the very mention of his adoptive father was the utmost lowest of low. The dragonslayers' parents were a sacred subject that no one dared trample on. Gajeel's more so, given his infamous temper and less than stellar reputation. Natsu's blatant disregard, the way he callously tossed the dragon's name around, was the gravest of sins, an unforgivable desecration and the whole guild knew it, if the collective gasp from the horrified onlookers was any indication.

"Pops never did anything to you," he managed to grind out through gritted teeth.

Natsu must have known he had him then because the sly smile spread across his face once again, a victorious fanged grin. And with two words, he sealed his fellow dragonslayer's fate when he asked in a voice dripping with triumphant amusement, "Or Levy?"

"My girl can stand up for herself!"

"Your girl?"

Levy's voice rang through the hall. At her words the hostility and anger that permeated the room dissipated like the wispy remains fog in the midday sun and was quickly replaced with an entirely alien emotion from the iron dragonslayer, blind panic.

 _Oh shit. Oh shit!_

It was all of Gajeel's worst prepubescent nightmares come to life, and even if he was still fully clothed, it didn't stop the nauseated feeling or the cold sweat that broke out across his forehead.

Singled out in a crowded room: check.

The exquisitely hot girl who had been haunting his dreams: check.

Revealing his deepest darkest secret about said hot girl to the gathered assembly: check and check.

A string of curses ran through his mind, and most likely out of his mouth as well, though looking back Gajeel could only remember soft sound of her sandals as they padded around the tables to face him. Crimson eyes watched her approach, trailing her as she weaved her way through benches and tables. When she finally stopped in front of him, he'd be damned if those brown orbs she called eyes weren't gazing up at him with something akin to hope shining like a beacon.

"Your girl?' she repeated softly.

He tried to school his features into a semblance of nonchalance, to mask the shock on his face, but failed miserably, finding that he was frozen. He was panicking, Levy could tell; the deep rhythmic sound of his breathing that had often lulled her to sleep on the long missions they shared came in short shallow gasps. Dilated pupils stared back at her, his crimson irises nearly obscured as adrenaline coursed through his body. He gaped at her like one of the fish Natsu and Happy caught on one of their various fishing trips, the overwhelming thought of _'What do I do? What do I do?'_ running a relay race through his head. It seemed like an eternity passed as the two stared at one another. Him incapable of breaking through his panic-stricken daze; her uncertain, or unable to say anything more lest it startle the poor man further.

Finally someone cleared their throat, probably Lucy, though neither of them could recall whom exactly, and it startled the two. Levy sucked in a deep breath as she tore her eyes from Gajeel and realized where they were, and more importantly, who was watching them. She looked back at Gajeel and inclined her head to the door, a silent offer, plea really, to leave the hall and away from the prying eyes of their guildmates.

When Gajeel didn't respond, she reached forward. Bewildered eyes watched her hand as it latched onto the soft fabric of his jacket, and confusion flitted across his features until she gave a tug. Dumbly he followed past winks, a catcalling Cana, and the two male members of Shadow Gear who were silently glowering at them from the bar.

Knuckles turning white from where they still clutched his shirt, Levy pulled him through the doors of the guild and out into the chill of evening. She should have grabbed her jacket, Levy mused with a shiver. Should have grabbed all of her things really, but the guild was as much home as Fairy Hills was, and even the newest members to the guild knew better than to mess with her books. After rounding the first corner, Levy realized she hadn't released her death grip on Gajeel's cloak. With a wince she retracted her hand, shaking it, hoping to restore the blood flow and then dropped it to her side.

The script mage led the two through the streets of Magnolia. The determination behind her step completely at odds with the fact that she had no set destination in mind, just away. Away from the guild, away from their friends, away from every distraction that might hinder the conversation to come, because, gosh darn it; she was done putting it off. Blindly she marched through the city and when she was finally satisfied that they were far enough from the guild, she stopped to take stock of where they had ended up. With Lucy safely back at the guild, and Natsu by her side, it seemed Levy's subconscious reasoned that the bridge near Lucy's apartment would be as safe a place as any for a heart to heart with her dragonslayer.

She strode over to the side of the bridge, leaning against the rail for a beat. Every sense acutely aware of the iron dragonslayer's presence, she felt his approach as he trailed after her. He lingered a few feet behind her, just far enough away that she couldn't feel the heat from his body, but could still hear the nervousness of his feet shifting as she gazed down at the river below her. Unable to stand the silence any longer she turned to look at him. Now that Levy was face to face with the man, she could see the edge of hysteria he'd been experiencing at the guild had yet to fade.

The trek across the city had done nothing to ease Gajeel's agitation, the emotional turmoil at finally being confronted by the blue-haired vixen before him still wreaking havoc on his internal organs. The cold air however, and the break from the intensity of her gaze did manage to snap him out of his statued countenance, and he found himself beginning to pace. Heavy boots beat an oddly syncopated rhythm across the walkway. Eyes bored into the cobblestones as he determinedly avoided making eye contact with her, lest she transfix him again with those blasted doe eyes of hers.

"This wasn't… Shit! I didn't… I couldn't… fuck!"

"Gajeel," she breathed as he paced closer to her.

She reached a hand out to place it on his arm in the hopes to soothe him, and he flinched, physically recoiling in on himself and skittering –if you could use the word to describe the hulk of a man and the way he sprung out of her reach- away from her as though the offending appendage was a venomous snake. She found it bizarre, drinking in the sight of the normally unflappable dragonslayer flustered beyond all recognition. He could look eminent doom in the face without batting an eye. Heck the man could stare down a real live _dragon_ and could still find enough courage to make a snarky comment or two. But put the fearsome Kurogane, _the_ Black Steel Gajeel in front of her, tiny Levy McGarden, the shrimp who barely reached his shoulders and needed his brawn to her brains during the S-class trials, and he could barely muster the ability to string two words together.

She couldn't help it, she really couldn't.

Frantic giggles exploded from her, until she was nearly on the ground, hunching down on her heels and clutching her sides.

"What are you laughing at?!" Gajeel snapped, finally looking at the girl, his anxiety temporarily forgotten in his anger.

"You, you big dumb dragon," she wiped tears of mirth from her eyes.

He glared at her, or at least attempted to, but the pink that tinged his ears and cheeks made him look more like a sheep in wolf's clothing than anything else. Not that she would ever tell him, but a bashful and sputtering Gajeel was one of the most adorable things she'd seen in a long time.

Shaking her head at the man, Levy took pity on him and waved a hand at him, beckoning him to her side. She sat on the ledge of the bridge, legs dangling over the side, and patted the cement next to her. The cold concrete bit into the back of her thighs where her too short dress ended and for a second time that night she regretted leaving her jacket back at the guild as the light breeze stirred the surface of the river below. Levy waited, chin resting on the lowest rung of the bridge's railing, knowing that if he'd followed her willingly this far, at some point he would join her. She wasn't disappointed either. It couldn't have been longer than a minute or so before he drew in a deep breath, steeling himself and then walked the short trip to throw himself down next to her. He sat close enough that the sleeve of his jacket brushed against the hairs of her arm, sending a shiver down her spine and raised goose bumps down her arms. Levy rubbed her arms trying to restore a bit of warmth to them.

Her sudden movement catching his eye, Gajeel glanced at her from the corner of his eye, hoping she wouldn't catch the brief look, but when she tilted her head to look at him, he knew he'd been caught. Quickly he turned his gaze to the river below them. The inky black water swirled before his eyes, the stark contrast between Levy's sandal-clad feet and river below not lost on him, one of the few bright spots in his dark and tattered life. Had the situation been different, he might have chuckled at his philosophical musings at the mere sight of the tiny script mage's feet.

There was a meaningful pause, and then she mused, "Your girl huh?"

"Yeeaaah," the word was drawn out as though he had no idea what to say next, just that _something_ needed to fill the silence. "Stupid." He shook his head. "I shouldn't of said it. Ya don't have to tell me off or anything. I know I don't got any right. Not after everything I've done to ya."

"You mean like save my neck, like half a dozen times?" she chided. He made a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat. She could feel his rebuttal as he shifted to glare at her and so she pressed him further. "Do you honestly think I would have let you be my partner during the trials if I didn't trust you to have my back? Or the Master for that matter?"

"No?" Doubt seasoned his response making it less of the statement that he wanted it to be.

"And do you think I could trust you if I haven't already forgiven you?"

"I-I," he scraped a hand through his hair, tugging on the locks. "But I haven't- I don't deserve…"

Levy cut him off. "Doesn't matter what you do and don't deserve. I've already made my choice and there's nothing you can do to change my mind."

"Whatcha mean?"

* * *

To be continued...

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	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I own absolutely noting!

* * *

"Doesn't _matter what you do and don't deserve. I've already made my choice and there's nothing you can do to change my mind."_

 _"_ _Whatcha mean?"_

Suddenly Levy felt shy, any and all bravado draining from her body, and she averted her gaze, looking off into the distance.

She hadn't wanted to make the first move, and if she really took the time to analyze the evening thus far, she still technically hadn't; the first move had been his. ' _His girl.'_ That's what he'd called her and obviously from his reaction in the guild it meant something.

 _Right_?

He could have called her anything else. It wasn't like he didn't have a laundry list of nicknames for her that was equal parts derogatory and endearing. Shorty, Shrimp, Shortstack, Bookworm; he seemed to have an endless hoard ready to christen her with at a moment's notice. After years of his juvenile name-calling, her protests had become more routine than actual objection, and they both knew it, even if she would vehemently deny it. It hadn't escaped Levy's notice that he only seemed to come up with nicknames for those deemed worthy of his notice, even if most of them were insulting in some way and if Levy was completely honest with herself, she secretly reveled in his more inventive creations, the more absurd the better. Not a week went by without the dragonslayer coming up with yet another ridiculous nickname for the solid script mage, seeming to take great pleasure at seeing how red he could make Levy's cheeks flush, and if she chose to see them as terms of endearment rather than derisive insults, well that was something Gajeel had yet to disprove.

But since his faux pas in the guild, he had yet to say much more than a stuttered apology, which was, in no way, shape, or form, a profession of love. It wasn't a profession of anything, really, except regret at his choice in phrasing the statement.

And, no, Levy hadn't expected some flowery confession either. That wasn't Gajeel's style and any girl who assumed that the iron dragonslayer would give her one would be grievously mistaken.

She had hoped that he'd have at least acknowledged _something_ by now though, some feeling or lack there of. Maybe asking that was too much.

And now here she was, thanks to her own foolish attempts to mollify the agitated dragonslayer, irrevocably backed into a corner because she couldn't stand to see Gajeel in such distress. Curse her caring nature and her inability to allow the people she cared for to suffer! Especially considering that wheedling a confession of love out of the man didn't require giving him an aneurism and a heart attack simultaneously, both of which seemed like very real possibilities had she not attempted to calm Gajeel.

So it was, Levy could see no other options out of this.

Either she washed her hands of her feelings and effectively curtailed the relationship in its beginning stages for the sake of keeping his friendship, or she admitted to her growing affection and risked the consequence of it being one-sided. Not that Gajeel would rub her unrequited love in her face, or expose it to the guild. He might be cocky and arrogant, his relentless bragging about his fighting skills both on and off the field of combat a prime example of this, but she knew the cold hearted and cruel reputation he had earned during his time at Phantom was really a farce.

She was standing on the edge of a cliff; a vast ravine of heartbreak and jagged rocks below and the wrong word could send her plummeting over the edge. Somewhere at the bottom was the hope that her feelings weren't just some romanticized notion she'd gleaned from too many hours with her nose stuck in a book and that Gajeel would be there to catch her, metaphorically speaking of course.

The script mage fiddled with the fabric of her dress, her motions becoming more frantic with each passing minute.

Corners, cliffs, and oh jeez now her inner monologue was a hodgepodge of metaphors. Not for the first time, Levy was thankful that Gajeel's dragonslayer abilities didn't manifest themselves like Cobra's. He'd probably get a headache from listening to her mind ramble on; she certainly was, and _gah!_ How much time had passed since he'd asked his question?

Any minute now he was going to get up and walk away, Levy was sure.

Sensing her growing unease, Gajeel debated for a moment, wrestling with his impatience at wanting answers and not wanting to push Levy. Finally deciding to settle somewhere in between, he scooted closer to her, somehow knowing that his warm presence would calm her nerves and that she would eventually talk to him if he just gave her the time. He shifted, his arm reaching behind her back, palm resting on the pavement, cautious to keep enough distance between Levy and the appendage to maintain the delicate balance between offering comfort and breaching the edge of her personal space.

He'd leave it up to her, if Levy welcomed the physical contact or not and if it so happened that it wasn't welcome, he'd at least pretend to not to be disappointed.

His shifting didn't go unnoticed either. Levy could feel the heat emanating off his arm and her heart give a lurch. He wasn't getting up; he wasn't leaving. It even seemed like he was making himself comfortable, settling in for an indefinite period of time.

And when he didn't press her further, she realized he was giving her time to think, time to put together exactly what she wanted to say. He was being patient with her.

A feat she'd only seen him accomplish with Wendy, after the youngest dragonslayer had come to him for help in strengthening her combat skills. Often times, he'd ask the girl to reflect on their sparing matches, looking for ways she could improve her battle abilities, waiting for the Sky Maiden to devise a different strategy based on what hadn't worked.

Apparently the gruff dragonslayer had a penchant for showing unwavering patience with short, blue-haired mages.

The thought made her smile and she realized with a start she was ready to make the jump. Whether or not Gajeel would be there to catch her, whether or not he loved her back, was irrelevant. If she lived the rest of her life without telling him, especially after she'd worked this hard, and asked so much of her best friends, it would be quite a long time before she would be able to forgive herself.

Not to mention, a small voice in the back of her head whispered, if things did work out, and Gajeel returned to the guild in a better mood, Natsu would stand a fighting chance after their altercation at the guild. Because she knew there would be no getting away with what the fire dragonslayer had done.

Finally Levy nudged him with her shoulder and when he looked down at her with expectant eyes, she breathed, "I'm pretty sure that I've been your girl for a lot longer than either of us care to admit."

She looked down at her lap, cheeks absolutely burning with the blush that lit up her face.

"Oh," Gajeel said after a moment's consideration. He gave a short nod. "Good."

Levy swiveled to face him, her face of mixture of shock and indignation.

"Oh _good_?" Her voice broke over the word. "Really?! Of all the things to say?! You insensitive jerk! I knew you weren't the most verbose man in the world, but that's the reaction you give me? Good? I basically confess my… ugh!"

She swallowed a shriek and pressed fingertips to her temples, attempting to relieve the sudden headache his reply had caused. Why did he have to be so… so… difficult?

"Yeah. Good," he chuckled at her. "Really good."

His face lit up with a devious smirk, one that stretched wider exposing his teeth as she glowered at him. Another rumbling laugh rolled through him and he leaned forward. His face inched closer, invading her space until his forehead rested against hers, and unbidden, her lips parted. Their breath mingled and he inhaled, taking in her scent. Her breathing hitched then, as if sensing his intention, and at the sound, his own heartbeat thundered in his ears.

His voice, a husky seductive rumble, sent pleasant chills down her spine as he growled, "Means I can finally do this."

"Do wh…?" but her question was swallowed up as his lips crashed into hers.

Levy's eyebrows shot to her hairline in surprise, but she didn't pull away. The kiss was gentle and entirely too timid, nothing Levy would have ever associated with the dragonslayer as though he was still uncertain of her feelings, even after she'd admitted them, and that would _not_ do.

Obviously he needed to be shown. He was a man of action rather than words, and if he needed multiple reminders in the future, well who was Levy to deny him. One hand slipped behind his neck, seeking to pull him closer, and the other slid onto his collarbone where her nails latched into the fabric of his cloak.

Happy to oblige the girl, Gajeel tipped her chin up, angling her head so that he could deepen the kiss. Fangs grazed her bottom lip, startling her, her eyes fluttering shut at the sensation and his eager lips swallowed her gasp before it could leave her mouth.

His nose brushed against hers, his senses acutely aware of everything. The taste of her lip gloss, vanilla today. The way her hair fluttered across his cheek, the gentle breeze tickling the side of his face. The soft moaning coming from the girl as she pressed herself closer to him, the sound sending his blood boiling and he returned the sound with a low groan of appreciation.

A callous hand snuck from her chin to tangle itself into her silken blue locks, taking the time to caress the shell of her ear and very gently tugging on her earlobe, before burying itself neatly into the tresses. If this were heaven, he'd gladly spend eternity here.

Their lips moved in tandem as if they had done this before and Levy was sure her brain had short-circuited, all rational thought fleeing from her brain until there was nothing left but Gajeel and the feel of his hand on the small of her back pulling her closer, his chest pressed against hers, her lips on his and _oh Mavis!_ For a man known for being so coarse, how were his lips so soft? But then, who really cared how, if he would just keep kissing her like this?

Though he was loathe in doing so, the burning sensation in his lungs, the desperate need for oxygen making itself known, forced him to break the kiss. Breathless and panting, he rested his forehead against hers again. Half-lidded eyes raked over her face, taking in the flush of her cheeks, her swollen cherry-red lips, and her own stuttered breathing.

Meeting his eyes, she gazed back up at him. A look that was equal parts confusion and barely concealed lust burned in her eyes. "That's not fair," her lips pulled into a pout and he was sorely tempted to capture them once again. "You know how I feel, but what about you?"

"Do ya really have to ask? After that display at the guild?" he scoffed, a teasing lilt evident in his voice. "Or just now?"

"Gajeel Redfox I swear, so help me…" she growled, a irritated sound that could have sent the fiercest of dragons running for the hills with his tail between his legs and he would have been impressed if she hadn't tugged on a fistful of his hair, making him yelp as the pain registered.

Though he was obviously enjoying watching her squirm he knew that she wouldn't be satisfied until he gave her a solid answer, and after her declaration, she deserved to know how he felt about her. She deserved so much more than that, especially for putting up with his sorry ass for so many years, but he'd start with answering her question.

Gajeel reached up to disentangle her hand and laced his fingers through hers. His other hand cupped her face; thumb stroking small circles on her cheek.

"Lev," he paused at the small gasp that escaped her lips at the abbreviation of her name. He called her that often enough in his head, but based on her reaction, he'd apparently yet to voice the nickname aloud. The smile on her face told him that unlike his other nicknames for the girl, this one was one she appreciated, and he concluded, that if it could get her to smile that brightly at him, he'd definitely be using it more often. "I'm pretty sure I've been in love with you a lot longer than you've been 'my girl.'"

Levy blushed a glowing scarlet, but that was ok, because if blushes were contagious, they were certainly an airborne pathogen and Gajeel had undoubtedly been infected as well. She buried her face in her free hand for a brief moment and then peered up at him through her fingers.

"Really?" she breathed.

"Course," he snorted and rolled his eyes. "An' here I thought you were the smart one, Shorty."

"Hey! I resent that, you jerk!"

He snickered and Levy was torn between glaring at him and joining in. Gajeel flinched as her fist connected with his shoulder, but it was half-hearted at best and lacked any effort towards real violence, because the insult paled in comparison to his revelation. He loved her? He really loved her?! Gajeel Redfox, the surliest, grumpiest dragonslayer in all of Fiore, loved her. But thinking about it, the man had gone to great lengths to make amends for all of his mistakes and failures, so it only made sense. Screw cliffs and corners and all those things that didn't matter. He loved her and she loved him and oh what a fantastic feeling that was. There were no words for this and any definition or description found in dictionaries or thesauruses would find itself woefully inadequate.

He stood, and offered her a hand. Accepting, Levy felt herself be pulled to her feet. She moved to brush the dirt from her dress, but Gajeel would have none of that. Hand still grasped in hers, he yanked, the swift movement pulling her forward and into his arms. She collided into his chest with an embarrassed squeak that drew a dark rumbling chuckle from him.

Gajeel leaned down and their lips met a second time. It was just as mind numbingly perfect as the first and he could feel Levy trembling in his arms. However, as the wind picked up it became apparent that it wasn't just from the intensity of their kiss.

"Come on. We need ta get back," he admitted.

"Why?"

Levy wanted to pout and couldn't hide that fact from coloring her voice. Instead she chose to hide her face against Gajeel's chest. She had finally gotten Gajeel alone, finally been able to hash everything out. He'd told her he loved her and all she wanted was to take the time to revel in the exceeding joy that had filled her heart and must have been shining from her face.

And now he wanted to return to the guild, where all their privacy would be lost, and they'd have to face their friends. Not to mention what everyone would say after that outburst. Oh Mavis! What had she been thinking?!

"It's cold," he emphasized his point by running a finger down the length of her arm, trailing over the already present goosebumps, but the shiver that coursed down her spine had absolutely nothing to do with the temperature. "'Sides we should probably get back to the guild before your boys come looking for us, in case I'm up to no good."

"Yeah right," Levy scoffed and smirked up at him. "Jet and Droy know I could so take you, Redfox."

"Is that so, McGarden?"

"Yup!" she chirped. Reaching out, she grabbed his hand and laced her fingers with his. She tugged gently and the two started their trek back to the guild. "In any case, you do realize this makes you one of my boys now?"

"The hell I am!" he exclaimed in an indignant huff.

The two continued their banter through the streets of Magnolia, ducking into alleyways to exchange kisses, and sooner than either wanted, they found themselves back at the doorway to the guildhall. Levy went to open the door, but Gajeel stopped her. He gave her another lingering kiss. The unhurried promise spoke of what was to come, the slow simmering of two lovers with all the time in the world to revel in the nearness of one another.

"Now you'll have ta excuse me for a moment."

"Where are you going?" Levy whined, sounding more like a petulant child than she wanted.

Gajeel winked at her and pushed open the door.

"I believe I have a salamander to squash."

* * *

Retreating from the memories of that night, Gajeel gazed at his fist, rubbing a knuckle that ached sometimes when the weather changed, the phantom pain from when he'd punched Natsu. The collision of fist and skull had broken a couple bones in his hand and hurt like a bitch, but the fleeting look of horror on Natsu's face before said fist had rendered him unconscious was completely worth it. Not to mention the cooing and coddling he'd received from Levy when she bandaged his wounds, after she'd given him a good verbal thrashing for attacking the fire dragonslayer without preamble.

But then Natsu had it coming for causing a scene at the guild, and, really, his fellow dragonslayer should have seen it coming, even if his back had been to the door when the two of them arrived back in the guild.

"Huh?" he muttered, more to himself than to Levy. "Who knew the Salamander had more brains than anyone gives him credit for?"

Levy hummed a noncommittal answer and he realized as he caught her staring at the book across room that he'd lost her attention. Nimble fingers slipped under his shoulders, and Levy feigned struggling with his weight in an attempt to extract herself from the hibernaculum they'd created. He groaned overdramatically and pressed himself further into her legs. As Gajeel snatched up the long forgotten blanket off the floor, he tried to flash her innocent eyes, but he couldn't hide the roguish smirk spread wide across his face. Ignoring her wishes, he tossed the fabric across his frame and burrowed deeper into her lap and the cushions of the couch, settling in to resume his nap.

She gave him a stern look, and when Gajeel continued to feign ignorance to her obvious desire to get up, those manicured fingers reached for a sensitive spot on his chest. He yelped and finally relented as she pinched his bare skin. He sat up, stretching both arms above his head and she scooted off the couch.

"Ya know," Gajeel murmured while watching her stoop to begin collecting the pages of the book from the various places they'd fallen. "I was gonna tell ya sooner or later."

"Sure you were."

"Was too," he grumbled. He crossed his arms across his chest and huffed.

"You're funny," she giggled at the pout she knew he was giving her from underneath the coffee table. "Tell another."

The iron dragonslayer growled, but with her out of arm's reach there wasn't much he could do. That didn't mean he was out of options though. Reaching beneath him, Gajeel grabbed the pillow that his head had been resting on. Fingers clutching a corner, he took aim and let it fly. His aim was true and the cushion smacked squarely onto Levy's butt.

Her head, which had been buried underneath the coffee table, shot up and he heard a muffled "ow" at the impact. Scrambling out, she rubbed the lump at the top of her head; a spot that would surely bruise, and glowered at the man who smiled so sweetly back at her, as though the pillow had some how magically launched _itself_ across the room. She grabbed the pillow, hurling it at his face to distract him, and then threw herself on top of him, intent on shoving the fluffy cushion into his face and making him regret his choice to throw it at her in the first place.

Gajeel sprang up, fingers digging into her sides. Laughing, she grasped for the pillow from where it had fallen between him and the couch. Levy squirmed in his lap as he tickled her, and when she finally managed to grab the pillow, she whacked him in the face again.

He growled, a playful sound that was accompanied by a sly grin, and he wrapped his hands around her waist. The iron dragonslayer jumped to his feet in a swift motion.

"What are you doing!?" she shrieked, caught off guard as he threw her over his shoulders. He continued his assault on her sides, tickling her as he turned towards their bedroom. Levy's breathless giggles rang out while she pounded on his back with her fists. "Put me down!" she demanded.

Shifting his cargo to carry her one handed, he reached up swat her butt. Smug smirk stuck on his face, he threw her snarky words from earlier back in her face.

"Me dragon man. You tiny woman. We make sexy times."

 _Fin_

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